Method of producing a cotton substitute from ramie.



PIERRE BIRKENSTOCK, 0F LARBRESLE, FRANCE.

No Drawing.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known thatI, PIERRE BIRKENSTOOK, citizen of France, residing at 33 Rue de Bordeaux, LArbresle, Rhdne, in the Re-- public of France, .have invented new and useful Improvements in the Method of Producing a Cotton Substitute from Ramie, of which the following is aspeoification.

My invention relates to the treatment of 'decorticated ramie fibers and has for its object to reduce to abetting the raw 'ramie fibers by a chemical treatment and to obtain with said batting threads capable of being substituted for cotton threads. The fibers in said batting have the same length, fineness, curliness and appearance as cotton batting and the cost price thereof much under that of the latter. The thread obtained by spinning the ramie batting above mentioned has exactly the same ap pearance, softness and elasticity as cotton thread and a much higher strengtl'i.

Another object of my invention is to pro vide a batting which may be easily obtained at home in any desired quantity and permits of manufacturing threads with the same machinery as for cotton spinning, the preparation oi. the fibers necessitating only a few special machines which are simple and inexpensive.

One feature of my improved method is that the ramie instead of being treated in view of obtaining ramie thread proper is altered by chemical means into a curled fine flexible and homogeneous batting from which a thread is obtainable which has all the appearance and also all the properties of cotton thread, with a much higher strength. Ii ramie thread proper is to be obtained, numerous costly and complicated operations are necessary, such as 1 a repeated combing which results into a large waste and a net costprice absolutely impracticable so liar as cheap fabrics similar to calico and thelike. are concerned.v On the other hand, ramie thread cannot be obtained by spinning in the form of abattingbut as long fibersjf'Said thread is rigid, irregular and entirely deprived of elasticity and suppleness.

According to my invention, combing with; its drawbacks is entirely doneawaywith, the

. Specification of Letters Patent.

METHOD OF PRODUCING COTTON SUBSTITUTE FROM RAMIE.

Patented Oct. 3, 1911.

Application filed November 8, 1910. Serial No. 591,375.

material being treated under a raw state and chemically reduced into batting so that waste is reduced to a minimum. The fibers may be given any desired lengths by cutting the same in an adjustable cutting machine having a great output, such as 3,000 kilograms per day and delivering the fibers at the exact length very regularly.

My method may be embodied as follows,

The numbers cited being only indicated by way of example:

A. 5 liters of sulforicinate of soda at 50% are poured into 1,000 liters cold water and mixed therewith. 20 liters caustic soda at 30 Baume are then added and mixed. kilograi'ns carbonate of soda Solvay are dissolved into 20 liters boiling wiiter and added to the above solution and 50 kilograms of raw deoorticaied ramie in. plats are then placed into the bath which is caused to boil for eight hours. The bath is then drawn oil' while cold water is run onto the material until it remains clear when. leaving the same. The material is then washed in cold water containing 1% chlorhydric or sulfuric acid, where it left for one hour. The material. is then washed down in pure running cold water and dried in a drying machine. F or preventing the ramie plats of becoming entangled together in the boili'ng bath, they may be bound together in bundles of 15 to 20 plats by means of cords or placed into metallic cages or any other device whereby the plats are maintained separate and may be thereafter tendered to the cutting machine as little distorted as possible for the sake of regularity in cutting the fibers. I

B. The ramie plats, treated as above being dried, are run through a breaking and beating machine as many times asnecessary for obtaining. fibers having a great suppleness, such machines being well known.

C. The ramie plats being rendered supple and flexible are cut in a cutting machine into lumps of fibers of any desired length, said lumps are thereafter treated in a break mg card with middle sized teeth for separating one from each other the fibers agglutinated together, the'fibers are then re- .moved to a card with finer and closer teeth for obtaining a thorough division of said fibers. The results .in spinning depend essentially upon a good separation of the fibers. Said fibers are then brought to the opening machine.

I The fibers kilograms) delivered by the opening machine are placed into a bath or curling bath of the following composition: into 500 liters pure cold water (distilled if possible or at leastcontaining .no limestone) are poured 2 liters sulforicinate of soda at 50% which are mixed there with. .300 liters caustic soda at 36 Baum are then added and mixed. The fibers are placed into said bath and left therefor one hour. Provision is made for stirring the same continuously by n'ieans of wood shovels or forks so that all particles of fibers may be attained by the liquid and the fibers on the top or the bath get at the bottom and vice rersa. The fibers are then dried in a centrifugal machine which should be in close proximity to the bath. As the fibers are dried they are put into a bath containing 1,000 liters cold water with 10 liters chlor hydric acid and. washed therein while continuously stirred. The fibers are then briskly removed from the bath and washed down in cold, pure runnii'ig water. This washing should be very thoroughly etietaed. It should especially be borne in mind that the fibers when taken out from the acidulated bath should not be left to then'lselves. They should be immediately washed in cold running water and then dried in a centrifugal machine. The batting thus obtained is thereafter thoroughly dried. in a drying apparatus.

The soda or curling bath waste left. in the centrifugal machine and the liquid left 'in the receptacle used for curling 'the batt ng are preserved for use in following optr-rtions. One may be surprised by the comparatively high proportion of caustic soda used' in saidcurling bath with regard to the small amount of material to be treated. This however does not increase in any way the cost of manufacture as the samebath may be used four or live times for treating new amounts of material provided care is taken in recuperating the waste and the liquid left as just above described.

The above step consisting in soaking the fiber-sin the curling bath is the mostimportaut ot' the l'n'oeess'. l t results in curling the fibers so that they may be fed in the required manner in spinning and carding operations and g-iving the thread the elasticity desired, while reducing the fibers to the necessary degree of thinness. The batting being dried is again run through a card with middle sized. teeth for opening and equaliz- 'ing the lumps Formed in the curling bath,

' and then brought to the spreading or lap machine; it is thereafter run through the linisliing(:ar l whereupon it. is ready for spinning which is effected as in the case of cotton batting and with the same machinery. The yarn obtained will then be bleached and boiled in a solution containing (300 grains pasty soap in 100 liters water. The men at: tending to the treatmentin the curling bath will be provided with rubber gloves. The above mentioned proportions and amounts may be varied within certain limits without departing from the scope of my invention.

Having now described my invention, what I claim as new and desire to secure by Letters Patentis: 1. A method for obtaining batting and yarn as a substitute forcotton consisting in treating the raivdecorticated ramie in a bath containing caustic soda, carbonate of soda and sulfm'icinateof soda, Washing the same in acidulated cold water and then in pure cold water, drying the same, breaking g5 and beating the material for giving the fibers suppleness, cutting the material to the length desired, separating the fibers, curling, the batting so obtained by treating the same ina cold water bath containing caustic soda and sulforicinate of soda, drying the material, washing the same in acidulated cold water, then in pure cold Water, drying the same, separating, spreading and finishing the dried batting; and spinning 5 the same as in the case of cotton batting, substantially as described and for the pur pose set forth. y

2. A method for obtaining batting and yarn as a substitute for cotton, consisting in mixing 5 liters sulforicinate of soda with 1,000 liters cold water, adding 20 liters.

caustic soda at. 30 13., dissolving 5 kilograms carbonate of soda 111 20 liters boiling water, adding said latter-solution to the former, placing 50 kilograms raw decorticated ranne into the bath'thus obtained,

' boiling the same, drawing oil" the bath. while running cold water onto the material until said water be clear when leaving the material, washing the material first in cold water containing 1% chlorhydric or sulfuric acid, soaking the material in said acidulated water, washing thoroughlyin 'pure' running cold water, drying the material,

breahii'ig and beating the material as many times as necessary tor giving the fibers suppleness, cut-ting the f'plats into lumps of the desired length, separating the fibers of the lulnps;.placing 50 kilograms of fibers when lea ving the-opening machine into a curling bath composed of 500 liters pure cold water, 2 liters sulforicmato of soda at 50% and 500 liters caustic soda at 50 13., soaking and stirring the fibers in said bath, drying the fibers, washing'andstirring the same in a bath containing 1,000 liters cold water with '10 liters chlorhydric acid, removing briskly the fibers from the bath, Washing them immediately in purerunning cold Waor and drying them; separating, spreading In testimony whereof I have signed my and fimslnng the dried batting thus obname to tins Spt-ClfiCfltlOll 1n the presence of tamed; splnnlng the material, bleaching the two subscribing witnesses.

yarn obtained and boiling the same in a PIER-RE BIRKENSTOCK. 5 solution containing 600 grams pasty soap in *itnesses:

100 liters water, substantially as described Dams GILLET,

and for the purpose set forth. MARIN VACHOY. 

